Global climatology of extratropical cyclones as seen by GPM

Abstract:

Extratropical cyclones (ETCs) play a vital role in regulating Earth’s energy balance and are also major sources of cloud and precipitation in the middle and high latitudes. Expanding on the tropical and subtropical focus of the TRMM satellite, this study takes advantage of the broad coverage of GPM to study the structure and precipitation physics of ETCs. ERA-Interim reanalysis profiles associated with GPM Precipitation Features (PFs) are used to determine which PFs are likely associated with ETCs. Analysis of the frequency of ETCs over ocean, coastal, and land regions will be presented. Cyclone-centered composites of GPM Dual Precipitation Radar (DPR) observations associated with ETCs will be shown, including horizontal radar reflectivity structures, distributions of precipitation frequency, type, and intensity, and radar echo-top height patterns associated with ETCs over oceans, coastal regions, and land. In addition, vertical profiles from the DPR observations will be used to quantify the precipitation vertical structure across cold, warm, and occluded fronts of ETCs to investigate the mesoscale variability of precipitation elements associated with events over oceans, coastal regions, and land. DPR vertical profiles associated with the three types of frontal overpasses will be examined as vertical reflectivity cross sections transecting the front, as well as composited into CFADs. Results from this study will contribute to a greater understanding of global ETC precipitation structures across ocean, coastal, and land regions.